“I hope we shall crush in its birth the aristocracy of our
moneyed corporations, which dare already to challenge our government to a trial
of strength and bid defiance to the laws of our country”
— Thomas Jefferson
1812
The
CORPORATE DOMINATION
of American Culture and
Politics
This is the fundamental fact of American political
life:
Ultra-wealthy corporations and banks are the
ultimate power behind the
An ultra-wealthy plutocracy, in one form or another, has
been the ultimate power behind the
A government “of the people, for the people and by the
people” has always been a total myth at the national level — and at most state,
county and large city levels as well.
In fact there is an inherent and overwhelming corporate
domination in all of mainstream American cultural, economic, academic,
artistic, technological and political life.
But there is also an inherent problem for the transnational corporations with this state of affairs. The
problem is that the majority of American people cherish the myth of “American
Democracy”.
Corporations themselves, however, are obviously not
internally democratic. Democracy is totally alien to the corporate mindset. And
the rule applies externally as well. Corporations flourish economically in
non-democratic political environments. In genuine democracies they cannot do
just anything they please to maximize their profits. There is too much
“interference” from all those lowly masses of voting people.
Therefore the desire of the majority of people for genuine
democracy represents a creative challenge to the corporations. These inherently
fascistic organizations absolutely must make sure that they appear to
the majority of Americans to be cherishing democratic ideals.
To survive, they must convince us they are caring, moral
people who have the same interests and values as the majority. But just a
little reflection reveals to an intelligent person that the political and
economic interests of the working majority must necessarily be
diametrically opposed to the interests of the corporate CEOs
and boards.
The self-interests of the greedy, ultra-wealthy owners of
corporations and banks are inevitably in direct competition with the
self-interests of the vast majority of people:
·
We want
higher wages/salaries. They want to maximize their profits.
·
We want
to pay a reasonable price for gasoline. They want to maximize their profits.
·
We want
to live in decent housing. They want to maximize their profits.
·
We want
to enjoy a clean, unpolluted, unravaged environment.
They want to maximize their profits.
·
We want
to eat clean, healthy, non-mutant food. They want to maximize their profits.
·
We want
a genuine democracy, with real candidates to vote for. They want to maximize
their profits.
Dictatorship
of the Plutocracy
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Corporate
executives like to pretend that “the competition of the marketplace,” free of
governmental interference, is the ideal of capitalist economics. But anybody
who is familiar with corporate “competition” knows that they actually seek
governmental interference — as long as it is in their favor.
Parasitical corporate welfare is a monumental
government interference. Corporate capitalism is in fact mere piracy,
exemplified when the
Some sort of honest regulatory influence would be
ideal, therefore. Without it, “the marketplace” is merely the economic anarchy
and corporate tyranny we endure today. When one of the corporate pirates
inevitably gets very big and powerful there is no longer even anarchic
competition. There is only economic dictatorship. (Politely
referred to as a “monopoly”.) And when a group of piratical corporations
work in concert, as the oil companies do, they can have a monopoly in effect,
if not in name, while telling us that “the competition of the marketplace”
still exists.
So we see that without control by the majority of the
people in any given nation, the so-called “competition of the marketplace” is
actually a thieving chaos that inevitably mutates into an economic dictatorship
of the winners of the competition. Since the first two decades of the 20th
century, the world’s greatest economic dictatorship has consisted of a
plutocracy of American corporations and banks.
At the national and international levels the genteel and
democratic-sounding “competition of the marketplace” is therefore just another
myth for popular consumption. There can be no democracy and no genuine
competition in a marketplace dominated by an ultra-wealthy plutocracy. Some of
these banks and corporations have a total monetary worth greater than the
entire gross national product of many third-world nations.
And given the grossly selfish, egocentric madness most
people indulge in when they get money and power, it’s no wonder that a
plutocracy is entirely antagonistic to the spirit of Democracy.
“...for the first time in its history, Western Civilization
is in danger of being destroyed internally by a corrupt, criminal ruling cabal
which is centered around the Rockefeller
interests, which include elements from the Morgan, Brown, Rothschild, Du Pont,
Harriman, Kuhn-Loeb, and other groupings as well. This junta took control of
the political, financial, and cultural life of
“The Bush family, beginning with Prescott Bush, have served
as satraps of the Rockefeller, Brown, and Harriman
interests. President Bush is simply a puppet of this powerful cabal, and their
schemes will be carried out by whatever next president comes to power unless we
the people can deflect them from this insane, murderous plot for global
dominance.”
— Dr. Norman Livergood
“The World Dominance Plot"
http://www.hermes-press.com/domplot.htm
Mass media
= mass illusion
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To
placate the masses of unthinking Americans, the corporations absolutely must
maintain the appearance of participating in — and even protecting — the
cherished American myth of “Democracy”. To create such mass-illusion on a
national scale is a real challenge. But so far, they’ve succeeded
spectacularly. They do it through the mass-media.
The corporate plutocracy owns the mass-media, and they’ve
been consolidating that ownership for over 20 years. That means everything you
see and hear in the mass-media is controlled by fewer and fewer people. Every
time you hear about the latest media mega-merger you’re hearing about the
further reinforcement of what is already the world’s greatest propaganda
machine.
Because of the effectiveness of that machine, when it comes
to national politics, most Americans can’t see the forest for the trees.
And international politics? Forget about it!
“It’s been demonstrated that well within two minutes of
watching television, most people enter a hypnotic alpha state bordering on
theta. Viewers in this state are no longer able to critically evaluate,
discern, or pass judgement from their own moral database on the material being
viewed. The information just flows, unimpeded, into their
subconscious year in and year out.”
— Jeff Rense
talk-radio host
http://www.rense.com/
Most Americans are only too willing to exist within a
mass-media-produced virtual-reality. They don’t have the guts to face the fact
that their own country is effectively owned and controlled by a corporate
mafia.
It’s no wonder, therefore, that the corporate-owned
mass-media can easily keep average Americans 100% clueless when it comes to
understanding the brutal, fascistic realities of world politics.
Especially when that means American
state terrorism.
Related sites
Corporate Watch
http://www.corpwatch.org/
“Corporate Watch provides news, analysis, research tools
and action resources to respond to corporate activity around the globe. We also
talk with people who are directly affected by corporate abuses as well as with
others fighting for corporate accountability, human rights, social and
environmental justice. As part of the independent media, Corporate Watch is
free of corporate sponsorship.”
Reclaim Democracy!
http://www.reclaimdemocracy.org/
“Imagine democracy with an actively participating public.
Imagine progress defined as improved quality of life for all people and
families. Reclaim Democracy! aims to make these goals
reality. We strive to restore democracy to improve our lives today, and for our
children’s future. We are a non-partisan grassroots organization and welcome
all who share our goal of regaining democratic authority over corporations. Our
interest is not mere corporate responsibility. The Reclaim Democracy! goal is to address our root problems and inspire people to
consciously choose what role corporations should play in society.”
Related pages
Our
Hidden History: Corporations in America
The
two-headed, two-faced American plutocracy
Corporations
Have a Chokehold on the U.S. Media
The
CIA, Insider Trading and the World Trade Center
Terror Attack
Mass-Media
Brainwashing in America
Solutions:
American Revolution 2 and a Humane Future of International Socialist Democracy
Civil
Disobedience and Tax Resistance
Revealing
Quotes 2: Corporate Capitalist Plutocracy
Bibliography
Corporate
Predators:
The Hunt for Mega-Profits
and the Attack on Democracy
by Russell Mokhiber and Robert Weissman
Democracy
for the Few
by Michael Parenti
Corporate
Media and the Threat to Democracy
by Robert W. McChesney
Globalize This!
The Battle Against the
World Trade Organization and Corporate Rule
edited by Kevin Danaher and Roger Burbach;
multiple authors
Market
Elections:
How “Democracy” Serves the Rich
by Vince Copeland
What
Uncle Sam Really Wants
by Noam Chomsky
The
Decline and Fall of the American Empire
by Gore Vidal
Against
Empire
by Michael Parenti
The
Sword and the Dollar:
Imperialism, Revolution and the Arms Race
by Michael Parenti
Derailing
Democracy:
The
by David McGowan
War
At Home:
Covert Action Against
by Brian Glick
The
Beast Reawakens
by Martin A. Lee
Blackshirts and Reds:
Rational Fascism and the Overthrow of Communism
by Michael Parenti
Western
State Terrorism
Alexander George, editor; essays by Noam
Chomsky, Edward S. Herman, Gerry O’Sullivan and
others
Terrorizing the Neighborhood:
American Foreign Policy in the Post-Cold War Era
by Noam Chomsky
Pressure Drop Press, 1991
Pirates and Emperors:
International Terrorism in the Real World
by Noam Chomsky
The
Culture of Terrorism
by Noam Chomsky
The
Habits of Highly Deceptive Media:
Decoding Spin and Lies in Mainstream News
by Norman Solomon
Inventing
Reality:
The Politics of News Media
by Michael Parenti
Manufacturing
Consent:
The Political Economy of the Mass Media
by Edward S. Herman and Noam Chomsky
The
Hidden Persuaders:
What makes us buy, believe
– and even vote – the way we do?
by Vance Packard
Dumbing Us Down:
The Hidden Curriculum of
Compulsory Schooling
by John Taylor Gatto
Toxic
Sludge is Good for You!:
Lies, Damn Lies and the
Public Relations Industry
by John Stauber and Sheldon Rampton
War,
Lies & Videotape:
How media monopoly stifles truth
edited by Lenora Foerstel; multiple authors